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Family History
Family History
My mom’s side of the family is fully Austrian, but I had no idea how many connections we had to one of the largest events in history, World War II. My great grandma, Margarethe (Mar-gar-eh-teh) Amann, was forced to work as a nurse, and both of her brothers were Nazi soldiers. She was a middle child between her two brothers Otto and Ludwig; Otto being the youngest and Ludwig the oldest.
Margarethe and Ludwig were able to return home after the war was over, but Otto was not. Otto was killed in former Yugoslavia in a city called Celle, (located in present day Croatia) where he was buried in a cemetery with no names. Ludwig passed not long after. He had shrapnel in his body and passed away from the amputation of both his legs.
History of Nazi Germany
History of Nazi Germany
The Nazi regime was in power during a time of great devastation and one of the most detrimental times in history. The Nazi Party’s rise was a direct result of Hitler’s anger and disappointment towards Germany’s loss in WWI. Hitler joined the German Workers Party (later to become the Nazi Party) and slowly rose to lead it.
Within the next two decades, Hitler became chancellor of Germany wanting to rule all of Europe. Hitler decided to make their move and in 1939, Germany invaded Poland and WWII began. They expected to win victoriously and conquer Europe but the plan backfired and left Germany in shambles all over again. According to the well-known site History.com, “At the beginning of the war in 1939, Hitler and his Nazi Party were fighting to dominate Europe; five years later they were fighting to survive.” As Nazi Germany started losing, they had to work harder than ever to stay alive.
Forced Labor Nurse
As a female citizen of Austria-Hungary during WWII, my great grandma was forced to work as a nurse, despite being only twelve years old when the war started. At the time, nursing wasn’t seen as anything more than public service until Nazis encouraged people that being a nurse would prove their loyalty to Germany. This was a form of propaganda they used to make their forced nurses happier with this assignment.
My great grandma was one of the nurses that worked in the tents and bandaged people up. It was a simple job but there were other professional nurse corporations that risked their lives to help patients. Nurses in such corporations went above and beyond to help patients, across the country or across the continent, risking their lives to do so.
Nazi Soldier
Nazi Soldier
Otto and Ludwig were both Nazi soldiers fighting on the front for the German domination of Europe. They were both part of the Heer, which was the army branch of the Wehrmacht.
Nazi generals were often bribed by Hitler to convince them to cooperate with him, despite not agreeing with his practices. Before long, more and more of these soldiers were supportive of the Nazi’s aggression and genocidal practices. However, to ensure Germany’s win in WWII, Hitler enforced even stronger rules because he believed lack of order was the reason for their downfall in WWI. In Hitler’s attempt to get even more people to follow him, army newspapers started telling people that Germany was fighting defensively against groups that wanted to enslave Germans.
Britannica
Captured!
Both Margarethe and Otto were captured during WWII, but only Margarethe made it out alive.
Otto was captured and killed by the Partisans on his way home after the war. He was taken to Yugoslavia, where present day Croatia is now, where he was killed in the city Celle. The Partisans were led by the Communist Party of Yugoslavia during WWII fighting against Germany and its allies. The Partisans were one of Germany’s most feared rivals throughout the war.
Margarethe was captured by the USFA (United States Forces in Austria) after they marched into Salzburg on July 14, 1945. These US Forces stayed in Austria until 1955 and were known as the “Rainbow Division”.
Margarethe was held in Austria somewhere near the Glan River for months. During this time, she had to sleep on the floor and wasn’t fed much and she ended up getting typhus. She was only 18. The USFA released her during her time with this deadly disease. She luckily was able to survive and go back to her daily life when she finally returned home.
How Were We Affected?
These events shaped life for my family greatly. For the obvious one, if my great grandma, Margarethe, died from typhus, I wouldn’t be here right now. It affected my grandma because she never got to meet her uncles who died in the war. The war had a brutal impact on my family and left Margarethe without her brothers.
Margarethe was forced to work in the war her whole time as a teenager, and Otto had to spend the last 6 years of his life fighting for the murderers. No kid or teen should be treated that way and forced to do such dangerous jobs. WWII will always be a very large and tragic part of history and I couldn’t have imagined how much it affected the family I have in Austria.
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